Clemson falls short in final minute at Florida State

Alex Hemenway had an open 3-pointer in the final seconds, but it bounced off the rim and allowed Florida State to seal an 81-80 win over Clemson on Tuesday night.

The Tigers led 80-76 entering the final minute, but RayQuan Evans made a pair of free throws and followed it up with a three-point play with 14 seconds left to give the Seminoles a one-point lead. After a series of timeouts, Clemson inbounded the ball to PJ Hall, who found Hemenway in the corner for a good look at a game-winner, but it didn’t fall.

Florida State opened the game with a 13-5 lead, but an 11-3 Clemson run tied the game at 16. The Tigers pushed to a 40-36 halftime lead behind 14 first-half points from Hall.

The Seminoles made a charge in the second half and stretched their lead to as many as nine with 8:34 left. Over the next seven minutes, Clemson went on a 22-9 run to take the lead before Evans’ late flurry won the game for Florida State.

Hall scored a career-best 28 points for the Tigers on 8-of-13 shooting from the field and a 12-for-13 performance from the free-throw line. Al-Amir Dawes and Alex Hemenway added 18 and 12 points off the bench, respectively. Clemson’s starting backcourt of Nick Honor and Chase Hunter combined to go just 1 of 13 from the field, however, and the Tigers ultimately needed just one more basket.

Evans matched Hall’s 28 points and also made 12 of his 13 free-throw attempts. Matthew Cleveland scored 13 points, and Cam’Ron Fletcher chipped in 17 off the bench for the Seminoles.

Clemson has lost its last five games since Hunter Tyson’s injury. The Tigers travel to Louisville on Saturday.